12 BULLETIN 715. U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 



hedges were allowed to bear fruit, and if the fence poles or possibly 

 even some of the telegraph poles bore bird houses, thousands of birds 

 could live where very few do now. 



The suggestions made are by no means without practical value to 

 the right of way itself. For instance, supplying bird boxes is the best 

 method of preventing damage to poles by woodpeckers, which come 

 anyway under present conditions and make their own homes. Hedges 

 or fences densely covered with vines would decrease, if not entirely 

 obviate, expenditures for the movable snow fences now extensively 

 used. 



The project of increasing the number of birds along the right of 

 ways should interest the agricultural development bureaus of rail- 

 roads. The small birds that are most easily encouraged when shrub- 

 bery, nest boxes, and water supply are provided, are chiefly bene- 

 ficial. Increasing then numbers would result in great destruction 

 of insects on adjacent farms, a very practical bit of agricultural 

 improvement. 



CONCLUSIONS. 



The use of bird-attraction methods on numerous public and semi- 

 public reservations in the United States would result in a decided 

 increase in the number of birds and in the usefulness of the reserva- 

 tions. Benefit would accrue not only to these areas but. through 

 increased destruction of injurious insects, to all adjoining lands and 

 the country at large. The lands are available, the methods are known. 

 and the certainly useful results wait only upon the interest and sup- 

 port of the administrative authorities, 



